Gratuities Increasing

[CHEZMARYLOU]

Gratuities are increasing on July 11, 2023 per Celebrity's web site.

 

Celebrity automatically adds gratuities** to guests’ onboard SeaPass® account, except for guests in Excluded Bookings*, as defined below, in the following amounts for sailings commencing on or after July 11, 2023: 

• $18.00 USD per person, per day for Inside, Ocean View, and Veranda staterooms 
• $18.50 USD per person, per day for Concierge Class and AquaClass staterooms  
• $23.00 USD per person, per day for guests of The Retreat

[gerelmx]

$0.50 (2.77%) increase per day

[PROCRUISE]

Glad we have paid gratuities on our two upcoming cruises.

[CunucuMom]

Newbie question; how is AI impacted for cruises reserved and/or paid in full?  Will I receive an invoice for the tip increase?

[bikerunner]

Just now, CunucuMom said:

Newbie question; how is AI impacted for cruises reserved and/or paid in full?  Will I receive an invoice for the tip increase?

No you will be all set if you AI as its built in

[prmssk]

Just now, CunucuMom said:

Newbie question; how is AI impacted for cruises reserved and/or paid in full?  Will I receive an invoice for the tip increase?

AI is not affected at all.  Your gratuities are covered regardless of what they cost at the time of booking or sailing.

[wrk2cruise]

Does the amount of increase bother me.  Probably not.  It's the frequency.  It's not been much over a year since they raised them last. 

[Dar & Bob]

So everybody is upset about the thread.  Thank you @CHEZMARYLOU for the heads up.  Our booked cruises are AI but for those not AI - prepay them at the current rate (at least you used to be able to do that)  Haha, I know I will be corrected if it isn't and maybe even if it is 

[Wineaux007]

I know Royal upped their gratuities then cut the stateroom service to once a day right after that, except for Suites.  We have AI on our next three Celebrity cruises, so gratuities aren't an issue, but did Celebrity cut back on stateroom service also, to once a day for all non-suites?

[wrk2cruise]

I know it sucks to be me but I have a sailing next year that is $1735 total and gratuities are an additional $504.  So about a 30% gratuity based on the cruise fare.  Oh yea it would be a higher percentage as you aren't supposed to tip on Taxes/Fees😀

 

No I'm not saying I have a problem paying them, it's just I used to ignore them as a trivial expense.  I can't do that anymore.   

 

When are they going to force cruise lines to be more transparent with their pricing like they did with the airlines several years back.   They should have to give you the total "out the door" price when shopping for cruises.

[prmssk]

16 minutes ago, Dar & Bob said:

So everybody is upset about the thread.  Thank you @CHEZMARYLOU for the heads up.  Our booked cruises are AI but for those not AI - prepay them at the current rate (at least you used to be able to do that)  Haha, I know I will be corrected if it isn't and maybe even if it is 

I always check the box to pre-pay them when I book.  In the past, that has always protected the gratuity cost against increases between time of booking and sailing.  I expect it will be the same this time too.  But if not, we can afford the extra $7 for our Ascent cruise.

[hcat]

We have 2 future cruises booked with "Grats included".  Should I assume our price will not increase?

 

Going forward..for us  there would be no more extras cash in hand tips (other than bar servers) at those prices..

 

grat increases are getting to be more frequent &  high..supplementing the  salaries.. same with some restaurants now  suggesting  28% to 30%.. ..and some even for take out ..crazy!

[prmssk]

6 minutes ago, wrk2cruise said:

When are they going to force cruise lines to be more transparent with their pricing like they did with the airlines several years back.   They should have to give you the total "out the door" price when shopping for cruises.

How are airlines more transparent?  After I book a flight, I often then face charges to pick a seat, charges to check a bag, charges to upgrade boarding or check-in times, etc.?  Yes, those charges are clear on the website if you do your research so you can anticipate them but the same is true with a cruise.

 

Hotels are often even less transparent with all the added taxes, resort fees, etc. that get added on to the base price.

[kywildcatfanone]

1 hour ago, wrk2cruise said:

Does the amount of increase bother me.  Probably not.  It's the frequency.  It's not been much over a year since they raised them last. 

Cruise lines have learned that price increases in any way is not impacting sales, so why not?  If a loyal customer stops sailing, their spot will be taken by a new cruiser.  In fact, that probably saves the cruise line money if there are still any loyalty benefits worth any money left.

 

This is the new way, and will not change until ships start sailing empty.

[kywildcatfanone]

I have a side question.  I have a final payment due next week.  If I pay it, and prepay gratuities as part of that payment, do I get the old rate or the new rate?

[davekathy]

2 minutes ago, kywildcatfanone said:

I have a side question.  I have a final payment due next week.  If I pay it, and prepay gratuities as part of that payment, do I get the old rate or the new rate?

Before 11 July you get the current rate.

[Cruzinforpeace***]

I always think of gratuities as part of the cruise fare.  I have everything added up, including gratuities and travel insurance when I book.  I then adjust the cabin category looking at the REAL total.  Unfortunately gratuities are one of those hidden costs most people don’t realize when booking their cruise.  The base cruise fare is just part of the story,

[goofysmom99]

I cannot recall a single cruise I've taken where OBC directly provided from X hasn't taken care of gratuities, and that's not counting shareholder benefit OBC.  I'm sure I can absorb a whopping +50¢/day.   The $8 increase for my Nov cruise is less than 1% of the X-provided OBC.  No clue why so much OBC this time (and will continue to donate anything left over to the crew fund).  

[lienf]

If I am reading this correctly my wife and I will have to pay $10 more for our 10 day cruise. If that’s the case we will need to think about cancelling. $10 U.S. is a huge hit for us Canadians. I will need to put away $1 a month for the next 10 months. 

[Baynanno1]

A small increase in gratuities is negligible when compared to the cost of living across the board.

 

On our home front it looks like we might be having cold showers.

Among other increases in power supply charges, hot water has gone up almost 50% 🤑

I'll be challenging that tomorrow, as our increases are above the new prices on the supplier's website.

 

 

[dlh015]

1 hour ago, lienf said:

If I am reading this correctly my wife and I will have to pay $10 more for our 10 day cruise. If that’s the case we will need to think about cancelling. $10 U.S. is a huge hit for us Canadians. I will need to put away $1 a month for the next 10 months. 

Perhaps you should consider a Go Fund Me page?? 🤔

Edited July 2, 2023 by dlh015

[the penguins]

13 hours ago, lienf said:

If I am reading this correctly my wife and I will have to pay $10 more for our 10 day cruise. If that’s the case we will need to think about cancelling. $10 U.S. is a huge hit for us Canadians. I will need to put away $1 a month for the next 10 months. 

Only 50 cents a month as surely your wife will contribute her share!😊😂😊

[KansasK]

For my last cruise on Royal Caribbean, the gratuities had been inceased and the cabin attendant came once a day.  So we paid more tips for less service.  

 

However, we knew it was not the fault of the cabin attendant and he was working awfully hard all the time.  We still tipped him what we prepaid and a little more for how hard he worked. 

[D. B.]

"Death by a Thousand Cuts" or in this case a Thousand small Increases?

[Ex-Airbalancer]

• $18.00 USD per person, per day for Inside, Ocean View, and Veranda staterooms 
• $18.50 USD per person, per day for Concierge Class and AquaClass staterooms  
• $23.00 USD per person, per day for guests of The Retreat
   

What is the amount before the increase ? 
was it $17.50, $18.00 , $21.50 ?